North East RadioWatch: November 5, 1999

Big Bird Gets to Live

Voters in MAINE overwhelmingly approved the referendum to issue bonds
for Maine Public Broadcasting's DTV conversion, although the 65% "yes"
vote was still the narrowest margin of any of Maine's ballot issues
this year. MPBN says it needed the money to convert its statewide
transmitter network to digital -- or else face the prospect of going
off the air in a few years. Whether or not you believe MPBN's scare
tactics -- and NERW doesn't -- it's at least heartening to see that
Mainers support their public broadcasting system.

Meantime on the commercial side of things, Saga is suing Citadel over
a non-compete agreement in Portland. Saga, which owns WMGX (93.1),
says former WMGX morning co-host Lori Voornas is sending letters to
advertisers on Citadel stationery in violation of her non-compete.
Citadel, which bought the Fuller-Jeffrey group in Portland earlier
this year, says the non-compete covers only on-air appearances, and
Voornas hasn't been on any of its stations -- yet.

A familiar face in Portland TV is coming home. John Dougherty made a
name for himself at WCSH-TV (Channel 6) in the 1980s before moving
down to Boston and WBZ-TV. He leaves WBZ November 19 to return to
Portland, this time as lead anchor at WMTW-TV (Channel 8).

The dead air continues in MASSACHUSETTS, as Brockton's 97.7 continues
to await its new urban format. The former WCAV does have new calls --
WBOT.

More talk shuffles at WRKO (680) this week, as Tai loses his 7-10pm
slot to a reincarnation (sort of) of "Two Chicks Dishing," with
ex-Chick Lori Kramer and ex-morning host Darlene McCarthy.

It must be no fun to be an LPTV these days, what with all the channel
shuffling necessitated by the impending arrival of DTV. In Boston,
two LPTVs fought for the chance to move to channel 40, and as usual,
the big guys won. The FCC is allowing W54CN to become W40BO, relaying
Paxson's WPXB (Channel 60) from Merrimack NH. The loser in this deal
is "little guy" WCEA-LP (Channel 19), aka "Cuencavision," which had
also applied for channel 40, replacing the channel it's losing to
WGBH-DT.

Up in the Merrimack Valley, we hear TalkAmerica programs have
disappeared from WCCM (800 Lawrence), replaced by Music of Your Life.
We also hear the station's new studios in Lowell are looking pretty
nice...

And congratulations to the folks at WBUR-FM (90.9 Boston), whose "Hear
and Now" midday show is adding Maine and New Hampshire's public radio
networks to its Boston-Cape Cod-Rhode Island markets via WBUR's own
network.

One tidbit from RHODE ISLAND: The WADK-FM calls are now official on
Block Island's 99.3, replacing the historic WERI calls on the FM side
(they vanished from AM 1230 in Westerly, their heritage home, last
year).

One bit of FCC nonsense from CONNECTICUT: Despite protests from WEDW
(88.5 Stamford) and WVOF (88.5 Fairfield), whose directional signals
are already tightly jammed into Fairfield County's coastline, the FCC
granted a KAWZ Twin Falls translator right between the two. W203BB
will operate from Norwalk, where it should make all three signals more
or less unusable. Thanks, FCC!

A public radio station in NEW YORK is trying to go global. Albany's
WAMC (90.3) has launched www.thepublicradiostation.com, designed to be
an outlet for programming that might not be able to find homes in many
markets across the country. NERW wonders how other public stations
around the country will feel about WAMC invading "their" markets...

Down on Long Island, longtime WBAB (102.3 Babylon) PD Bob Buchmann is
moving to the city, filling Bill Weston's vacancy as PD at WAXQ (104.3
New York). No replacement has been named so far.

Oops! The FCC has reinstated the calls and license of Cazenovia
College's WITC (88.9 Cazenovia), which were cancelled by accident back
in July. Now if we could just hear the station on the air once in a
while when we drive through that area...

Just outside the Rochester market, the rock format wars have claimed a
victim. Bob Pfuntner's WNNR (103.5 Sodus) has struggled against
Rochester-based WCMF and WNVE since signing on a few years ago. With
Clear Channel's WVOR staking its spot in the rock wars as well last
year, WNNR decided to choose a different course...so Monday morning
(11/1) found "The Winner" becoming "Big Dog Country." Woof!

Speaking of WCMF, its outspoken morning host, Brother Wease (aka Alan
Levin) is being sued for sexual harassment by former co-host Cindy
Pierce. Pierce has been on disability leave from CBS-owned WCMF
(96.5) since the summer. Wease is also being sued by an account
executive at the station for allegedly making sexual remarks about her
on the air.

Across town at WHAM (1180), look for reporter Susan Ashline to return
to the airwaves. She's been working strictly off-air since becoming a
candidate for Town Justice in the small town of Ontario -- but after
losing her race Tuesday night, she's back in the world of radio
full-time.

Religious translators on the march: Family Life Radio is applying for
91.9 in Greece to relay WCIY (88.9 Canandaigua). Expect opposition
from public broadcaster WXXI (91.5), which was turned down on its own
bid for a new west-side FM last year. In Buffalo, W207BB are the
calls granted for the new WPCS (Pensacola) translator on 89.3.

And just across the state line in Pennsylvania, we note a call change
from WWCC to WPSN on AM 1590 in Honesdale (across the Delaware River
from the Catskills...)

No news from CANADA this week...except that we'll be there next
week, exploring Vancouver, Victoria, and Seattle. NERW will appear
sometime Saturday (11/13) upon our return. See you then!